


Am I A Villain?

by Lilsciencequeen



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Angst, Discussions of Framework, F/M, Hopeful Ending, Post 4x20, post framework
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-05
Updated: 2017-05-05
Packaged: 2018-10-28 12:16:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10831089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilsciencequeen/pseuds/Lilsciencequeen
Summary: Post-Framework. Fitz deals with his inner demons and Jemma provides some words of reassurance.





	Am I A Villain?

“Fitz,” her voice whispered, soft and full of pain, at the same time that he asked, “What are you doing here?”, his voice full of fear and pain.

“I’m here to talk to you,” she offered.

“You shouldn’t be here,” he replied, backing away and raising his hands.

She shook her head. “Nonsense.” And slowly, she moved forward, still unsteady on her crutches. “It’s been days since we’ve talked Fitz. And we _need_ to talk. About everything.” She made her way into the room that he had been hiding in for the past number of days, one of the containment pods they used for the Inhumans and the door slid shut behind her.

As she slowly made her way to the bed, not putting any pressure on the leg that had been injured, that had been stabbed by the LMD that bore his face, he continued backing away from her, pleading with her to leave.

But she ignored him, sitting at the end of the bed, allowing herself to rest and take the pressure of her leg, both of which hung over the edge. She shook her head, and it was slow and sombre. “No Fitz, I’m not going to leave. We need to talk, and leaving this in the open air, not discussing it... It’s not healthy. And I’m not losing you. Not again. Not after all we’ve been through.”

“But why? Why do you still want me? After all I’ve done?”

She met his eyes. “What have you done Fitz?”

“I killed Mace, Agnes. I tortured Daisy. I was going to kill you, I _wanted_ to kill you.” His legs buckled under him, and he collapsed to the floor. His head fell back against the wall and he clutched his stomach, the pain in it too much. “I was going to kill you.”

Jemma shook her head again. “No Fitz. What did _you_ do?”

“I told you,” he whispered back. “I told you.”

But Jemma spoke over him once again, sitting up straighter and looked at him. “Because the Fitz I know, the man I love, he never did any of that. He’s a kind man, a trusting man with a big heart. He nearly drowned for me, ripped a hole in the Universe for me and dove into it not once but twice. That’s the Fitz I know. That’s the Fitz I love. And that’s the man sitting on the floor in front of me.”

“It’s not.” His voice was broken. “It’s not. I killed Agnes, an innocent woman.”

“Fitz,” Jemma sighed. “She died after entering the Framework. You never killed her.”

“You don’t need to lie to me,” he replied, looking up at her and his eyes are watery. “You don’t need to lie to me. I know what sort of monster I am.”

“Fitz, I’m not lying to you. I would _never_ lie to you. It’s true, she died moments after entering the Framework. Daisy found it on record while she was sorting through the data we found.”

“It still doesn’t make everything okay. Look at what I did Jemma. The pain, the hurt I caused. At what kind of man I was.”

“That _wasn’t_ you Fitz. You were brainwashed. It was like when Daisy was infected by Hive. She was forced to do all those things; kill Malick, hurt you. And you forgave her. Because you understood. You understood her free will had been taken from her. That she had been manipulated and what she was doing was something that our Daisy would never do. The same applies to you. What makes you think that you’re any different?”

“Because I wanted to do those things. I wanted to hunt Inhumans, torture Daisy. Kill you.”

“No. You didn’t, the version of you that lived in the Framework, the version of you that had been manipulated did. Not the man sitting in front of me.”

“I just can’t stop it,” he whispered. “Seeing it all. The pain, the hurt, the _death_ I caused.”

“I understand,” Jemma sympathised, sliding of the bed and onto the floor, forsaking her crutches and sliding across the floor to him. He tried not to flinch when she came close. He can’t help but be scared but not of her.

Never of her.

But of himself. He’s scared that the darkness he now knows resides in him will overtake him and hurt Jemma. Or worse; kill her.

“Jemma, I can’t… How can I sleep, how can I… when I know that there’s this darkness, this evilness inside of me?”

She reached forward gently, and once she saw that she hadn’t spooked him, she placed her hand on his heart. She felt the beat beneath her palm and took a breath before speaking again. “Because you’re not the man that AIDA made you into. You’re not the man that your father raised you to be. You’re the man that your mother raised. That handsome, pasty boy from Glasgow. You made your own decisions, made your own choices. You chose to be like this, this kind-hearted man who is so trusting and so caring and so lovely. And yes, awful things have happened. And they may change you, but they don’t define you. And they won’t ever define you. And healing, it’s going to take time. It’s not going to be instant Fitz, so please, don’t beat yourself up over it but you’re going to get there. One day, you’re going to get there and until then, and way beyond then, I’m going to be here. I’m going to be here and you’re not going to be alone. Okay? You’re never going to be alone.”

He nodded, understanding her words. He’s not okay, not right now. But maybe he can be. One day. He nodded again, before the tears started to flow and Jemma just pulled him into her arms, and held his shaking form as he cried.

**Author's Note:**

> I know I said I wasn't going to write anymore but after this afternoon, I just wanted to and this idea wouldn't leave my head. Thanks so much for reading and hope you enjoyed. Title from Canals by All Time Low.


End file.
